Chief Executive of North West Ambulance Service says the service is devastated by the attack in Manchester

Chief Executive of North West Ambulance Service, Derek Cartwright said: “The service is devastated by the attack in Manchester last night. We would like to offer our sincere condolences to those who lost loved ones and wish those in hospital a speedy and full recovery.

“We were made aware of the incident at 10.46pm and soon after declared a ‘major incident’. Our staff worked tirelessly throughout the night to coordinate the large scale response with 60 ambulances attending the horrifying scene in the city.

“Ambulance crews were accompanied by our hazardous area response teams, consultant paramedics, advanced paramedics and doctors who all offered their advanced clinical skills. We are extremely proud of the professional way our staff responded and treated those involved.

“In total, our clinicians treated and took 59 patients to hospital and approximately 60 ‘walking wounded’ were also treated by our crews but did not go to hospital.

“No matter how much we train our staff for incidents such as this, nothing can prepare you for the shock and sadness when tragedies like this occur. This is, indeed, a very sad time for Manchester.

“We would like to convey our thanks to our colleagues in West Midlands, Wales, Yorkshire and East Midlands ambulance services who provided mutual aid so we could continue reaching patients who needed our help in our communities.

“Finally, the co-operation of the public has been very gratefully received. We had many messages throughout the night from people volunteering their services, blankets, first aid skills and tea. It was extremely heart-warming to receive such messages and demonstrates how a city can pull together during these difficult times.

“We would also like to thank the public for being patient with us yesterday as we attended the incident and would like to assure people that as always we are available to anyone who urgently needs our help.”